Sam Jacobs is Editor in Chief at TIME where he leads TIME’s global newsroom and its journalism across all platforms. Since joining TIME in 2013, Jacobs has held a variety of senior editorial leadership positions. Previously, he was national political correspondent at Reuters, associate editor at Newsweek and staff reporter for The Daily Beast. His writing has appeared in the Boston Globe and New York Observer.

World Economic Forum President Borge Brende on Planning for a ‘Geopolitical Recession’

Do you think 2025 will be politically more or less stable than 2024? 

EU commissioner hopes Ukraine conflict continues
By arming Kiev, NATO member states may have granted themselves valuable time to “grow stronger,” Andrius Kubilius has stated...

As the fighting continues in Ukraine, NATO states may be gaining additional time to prepare for a potential military confrontation with Russia, Andrius Kubilius, EU commissioner for defense and space, has said.

Kubilius, a noted hawk on Russia and two-time prime minister of Lithuania, was approved by the European Parliament in November as the EU’s first-ever defense commissioner. He made the remarks on Wednesday during an address to the annual conference of the European Defense Agency. 

Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) called his preemptive pardon from former President Biden, announced Monday for all past members of the now-defunct House. Jan. 6 committee in the final moments of his presidency, “unnecessary” and “unwise.”

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued a thinly-veiled ultimatum to Russia, urging it to bring the Ukraine conflict to an end and strike a “deal,” or face new sanctions and high import tariffs.

Trump issued the warning in a post on his Truth Social online platform, proclaiming his “love” for the Russian people and insisting he was “not looking to hurt Russia.”

“We must never forget that Russia helped us win the Second World War, losing almost 60,000,000 lives in the process,” he wrote, exaggerating the estimated Soviet Union losses more than twofold.

“All of that being said, I’m going to do Russia, whose Economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big FAVOR. Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT’S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE,” Trump asserted.

Trump's Message BACKFIRES As Russia And China Get Closer Xi

Jinping and Vladimir Putin have had a telephone conversation in which they stressed the importance of deepening their cooperation. This comes in the light of Donald Trump threatining more sanctions on Russia. General Mike Elviss has stated that once the conflict in Ukraine stops, there will be a Russian resurgence and the Russian Army will become much stronger. Viktor Orban has accused Brussels of the fact that the EU has become uncompetitive.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dY6zy9SqOQw

Wearing his clearly marked press vest, and flanked by his older colleagues, 22-year-old former soccer commentator and `accidental journalist’ Abubaker Abed earlier this month indicted the negligence and hypocrisy of international media organisations regarding reporting of the genocide in Gaza: `You’ve seen us killed in every possible way. We’ve been immolated, incinerated, dismembered, and disembowelled. And recently we’ve been starving to death. What more ways of killing will it take for you to move and stop the hell inflicted upon us?’ 

What are Biden's Pardons Shielding His Family Members From? 

The Washington Post earlier reported that Hunter Biden and James Biden were paid about $4.8 million over the course of 14 months by Chinese Communist Party-linked businesses with which they were involved.

Former US President Joe Biden issued preemptive pardons to his siblings and their spouses before leaving office, alleging they were "targeted by politically motivated investigations."

James Biden, Joe's Brother, and Sara Jones Biden, James' Wife

A Russian decoy drone was engaged by Ukrainian air defenses over Kyiv today, close to where President Volodymyr Zelensky was meeting British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, leader of one of Ukraine’s staunchest allies. The drone’s presence further underscores the threat posed to Ukraine by long-range Russian uncrewed aerial vehicles, including unarmed ones intended to stimulate and confuse Ukrainian air defenses.

US President Donald Trump will try to make good on his promise to quickly end the conflict in Ukraine, but not at the cost of Kiev’s complete capitulation to Moscow, Dmitry Suslov, a member of the Russian Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, has told RT. 

Trump, who was sworn in on Monday, has repeatedly pledged to resolve the Ukraine conflict through diplomacy, but provided few specifics, aside from wanting to arrange negotiations between Moscow and Kiev. 

Suslov, deputy director for world economy and international politics at the Moscow-based Higher School of Economics, said that “the support for Ukraine has stopped being a priority for the US.” 

Energy prices have skyrocketed across the EU due to the disruption of cheap supplies from Russia, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has said.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Tuesday, von der Leyen said that before 2022, the EU was receiving 45% of its gas and 50% of its coal from Russia, while Moscow was one of the bloc’s largest oil suppliers. “This energy appeared cheap, but it exposed us to blackmail,” she said. 

Von der Leyen went on to claim that Russian President Vladimir Putin “cut us off his gas supplies” after the conflict in Ukraine erupted in February 2022. 

“Our gas imports from Russia went down by roughly 75%. And now we import from Russia only 3% of our oil, and no coal at all,” she stated.

Israel's military chief has resigned, saying he recognised his responsibility for its failure on 7 October 2023, when the Palestinian armed group Hamas carried out a deadly attack on the country that triggered the Gaza war.

In a letter to the defence minister, Lt Gen Herzi Halevi admitted the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had "failed in its mission to protect the citizens of Israel".

"My responsibility for the terrible failure accompanies me every day, every hour, and will be so for the rest of my life," he added.

The general said he would leave his role on 6 March at a time of "significant achievements" for the IDF, although he acknowledged that "not all" of Israel's war goals had been achieved.

It’s shock and awe time for Uncle Sam’s allies in the clown car who have mindlessly gone along for the ride. 

Not only is freshly re-minted US President Donald Trump reversing course at breakneck speed but, if his newly declared priorities are any indication, he seems to be headed, pedal to the metal, all the way back to the 80s. 

Trump roars back into office: Why US vassals are panicking
The newly-inaugurated president is serious about bringing back the glory days and risks leaving Washington’s allies in the dust

BY Rachel Marsden

Australian Government cabinet papers from 30 years ago show that Australian leaders suspected that the claims of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq were probably false. However, Australia committed troops because Australia wanted to ingratiate itself with the United States and was prepared to break international law to do so. This sets the standard for Australia’s willingness to co-operate with any Trump-led escalation of efforts to undermine China economy with tariffs and sanctions.

I honestly do not think Joe Biden ever had a chance to make sense of his four years as president. It is not merely his native stupidity, and Joseph R. Biden, Jr.’s  execrable record on the foreign side seems evidence enough that he is through and through, all-over stupid. This does not distinguish Biden among American presidents, after all. No, the matter to hand is larger. If you assume the task of running an empire and the empire has profligately abused the world’s once-considerable reservoir of goodwill, anyone short of a philosopher king was bound to fail as America’s No. 46.

When Russia invaded Ukraine nearly three years ago, President Joe Biden set three objectives for the U.S. response. Ukraine’s victory was never among them. The phrase the White House used to describe its mission at the time—supporting Ukraine “for as long as it takes”—was intentionally vague. It also raised the question: As long as it takes to do what?